Saline County is a county in Kansas, United States, on the Smoky Hill River in the central part of the state. It had a population of 54,303 at the 2020 census and covers 721 square miles (1,870 km2) centred near 38°47′N 97°40′W.
Salina is the county seat, and its postal code is 67401. The county has five incorporated cities, five census-designated places, and several other unincorporated communities, split across 18 civil townships. Saline County is in the Central time zone.
Towns & Villages in Saline County
Saline County has 17 named places on record, from the county seat of Salina down to farm-crossroads communities of a few dozen people. Five are incorporated cities; five more are census-designated places (CDPs) with no city government of their own; the rest are unincorporated communities with a name, a church or elevator, and little else. Type legend: City · seat = the county seat; City = incorporated city; CDP = census-designated place; Unincorp. = unincorporated community with no formal boundary.
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salina | City · seat | — | — | 67401 |
| Assaria | City | Smoky View | 417 | 67416 |
| Brookville | City | Spring Creek | 206 | 67425 |
| Gypsum | City | Gypsum | 408 | 67448 |
| New Cambria | City | Cambria | 172 | 67470 |
| Smolan | City | Smolan | 197 | 67457 |
| Bavaria | CDP | — | — | 67416 |
| Bridgeport | CDP | — | — | 67401 |
| Falun | CDP | Falun | — | 67442 |
| Kipp | CDP | — | — | 67401 |
| Mentor | CDP | — | — | 67401 |
| Glendale | Unincorp. | Glendale | — | 67401 |
| Hallville | Unincorp. | — | — | 67401 |
| Hedville | Unincorp. | — | — | 67401 |
| Marydel | Unincorp. | — | — | 67401 |
| Salemsborg | Unincorp. | — | — | 67416 |
| Shipton | Unincorp. | — | — | 67401 |
| Trenton | Unincorp. | — | — | 67401 |
The old listing for this page also carried nine mobile-home-park addresses (Cedar Creek, Del-Ray, El Haro, Golden Spur, Luther Ralph, Patio, Prairie Village, Smokey Valley, Southwestern, Sundowner West Meadows). These are Census-tracked housing developments inside or near Salina, not standalone towns, so they are left off the table above; the two duplicate listings for Bavaria, Bridgeport and Mentor in the old list have been merged into one row each.
Townships
Saline County is divided into 18 civil townships. Current township-level population is not separately reported by the Census Bureau for 2020, so the figures below are omitted rather than guessed; the table lists the townships and, where known, their principal settlement.
| Township | Pop. (2020) | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Smoky View | — | Assaria |
| Spring Creek | — | Brookville |
| Gypsum | — | Gypsum |
| Cambria | — | New Cambria |
| Smolan | — | Smolan |
| Falun | — | Falun |
| Glendale | — | Glendale |
| Dayton | — | — |
| Elm Creek | — | — |
| Eureka | — | — |
| Greeley | — | — |
| Liberty | — | — |
| Ohio | — | — |
| Pleasant Valley | — | — |
| Smoky Hill | — | — |
| Solomon | — | — |
| Walnut | — | — |
| Washington | — | — |
ZIP Codes
- 67401 — Salina (also serves Bridgeport, Kipp, Mentor, Glendale, Hallville, Hedville, Marydel, Shipton and Trenton)
- 67402 — Salina (PO Box only)
- 67416 — Assaria (also serves Bavaria and Salemsborg)
- 67425 — Brookville
- 67442 — Falun
- 67448 — Gypsum
- 67457 — Smolan
- 67470 — New Cambria
Salina’s 67401 ZIP alone covers roughly nine in ten county residents; every other named place in the county gets its mail through one of the seven ZIPs above rather than a code of its own.
Geography
Saline County sits on the Smoky Hill River, which crosses the county from west to east through Salina before continuing toward the Kansas River. The Saline River, which gave the county its name, runs through the northern townships. The terrain is a mix of river-bottom farmland along the Smoky Hill and gently rolling upland prairie elsewhere, typical of the Smoky Hills region of central Kansas. Of the county’s 721 square miles, 720 are land and 1.1 are water.
Saline County borders Lincoln County to the northwest, Ottawa County to the north, Dickinson County to the east, Marion County to the southeast, McPherson County to the south and Ellsworth County to the west. Live pages exist for Dickinson County, Marion County and Lincoln County; Ottawa, McPherson and Ellsworth counties are named here without a link.
Demographics
Saline County’s population was 54,303 at the 2020 census. Salina, the county seat, is by far the largest community, holding roughly nine in ten county residents; Assaria, the largest incorporated town outside Salina, has 417 residents. The county’s median household income runs below the Kansas median of $70,333, reflecting Salina’s mix of manufacturing, healthcare and agricultural-service jobs against the farm-income swings common in the surrounding townships. At 721 square miles of land and water, the county’s overall population density works out to roughly 75 people per square mile, though that figure is driven almost entirely by Salina; the rural townships are far sparser.
Economy & Local Life
Salina anchors the county’s economy as a regional trade and manufacturing hub for north-central Kansas, home to Kansas State University’s Polytechnic (Aerospace and Technology) Campus and Kansas Wesleyan University, plus the Salina Regional Health Center. Outside Salina, the county’s smaller towns and townships remain agricultural, with wheat, sorghum and cattle the dominant enterprises and local grain elevators serving as the commercial center of communities like Gypsum, Assaria and New Cambria.
History
Saline County was organized on February 15, 1860, and named for the Saline River, whose waters carry natural salt deposits typical of central Kansas. Salina, founded the same decade at the confluence of the Smoky Hill and Saline rivers, grew from a frontier trading post into the county’s dominant city as the railroad and later Interstate 70 and Interstate 135 reached it. Several of the county’s smaller communities, including Assaria and Smolan, trace their roots to Swedish immigrant settlement in the 1860s and 1870s, a heritage still visible in local churches and the Bethany Lutheran-affiliated Salemsborg community.
Getting There
Interstate 70 crosses Saline County east–west and Interstate 135 runs north–south through Salina, meeting at the city’s northern edge; U.S. Route 81 and Kansas Highway 4 also serve the county.
- Salina — the county seat itself, at the I-70/I-135 interchange
- Abilene (Dickinson County) — about 25 miles east via I-70
- McPherson (McPherson County) — about 25 miles south via I-135
- Ellsworth (Ellsworth County) — about 30 miles west via I-70
Salina Regional Airport offers commercial and general aviation service; the nearest larger commercial airport is Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport, about 90 miles south.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Saline County, Kansas?
It is in central Kansas, on the Smoky Hill River, about 90 miles north of Wichita.
What is the population of Saline County?
54,303 people, per the 2020 census.
How big is Saline County?
721 square miles (1,870 km2), of which 720 square miles is land.
What is the county seat of Saline County?
Salina is the county seat and by far the largest city.
How many towns are in Saline County?
Five incorporated cities (Salina, Assaria, Brookville, Gypsum, New Cambria and Smolan), five census-designated places, and several smaller unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Saline County?
67401 and 67402 (Salina), 67416 (Assaria), 67425 (Brookville), 67442 (Falun), 67448 (Gypsum), 67457 (Smolan) and 67470 (New Cambria).
Why is it called Saline County?
It is named for the Saline River, whose water carries natural salt deposits common to central Kansas streams.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Kansas.